Celtic will take the trip to Easter Road on Wednesday night to face a Hibernian side who are suddenly closing in on a crisis.
Jack Ross had a blistering start to the campaign that had the Hibees battling at the top of the table. However, 3 straight league defeats, all of which coming with gradually more worrying performance levels, has their fans fuming.
Rangers were fortunate to overcome Hibs 2-1 at Ibrox 3 weeks ago. But since then, they’ve been insipid going forward and leaky at the back.
A 3-0 home defeat against Dundee United had fans asking major questions. However, after gifting Aberdeen a 1-0 win and an end to their 10-match winless run, the Hibs support are demanding serious answers from Ross. Especially considering the level of performance put in yesterday at Pittodrie.
Despite coming up against a Dons side with only 1 natural defender in it, Hibs failed to register a single shot on target. In fact, across their last 3 matches, they’ve only worked the goalkeeper on 4 occasions. That’s despite bossing much of the play yesterday and against Dundee United last week.
Hibernian anything but solid as Celtic smell blood
Ross’ side have no problem holding onto the ball. However, despite having the likes of Martin Boyle, Jamie Murphy, and Kevin Nisbet all fit and available, they can’t find a spark in the final third.
They’ve now dropped to 5th in the table and are only in the top 6 due to a two-point gap. Another slip or 2 and Hibs will find themselves in the bottom half. With Celtic coming up on Wednesday night, that’s a real possibility.
Of course, Ange Postecoglou will be preparing for the best version of Hibs to come out this week. After all, similar was said about Livingston’s form prior to them beating us 1-0 at the Tony Macaroni Arena last month. The fact is Hibs still have quality, and can turn it on at any given moment. We know that from previous visits there.
Celtic haven’t won at Easter Road in the league for 7 years. There have been plenty of attempts in which Hibs have hardly been sparkling going into the game. But there’s something about this fixture that simply squeezes the best out of the Edinburgh side.
But even so, they’re close to a crisis with their fans left fuming at the manager and their performance levels. Here’s a look at some of the reaction to their latest setback yesterday:
In other news, Ayr United’s on-loan Celtic striker Jonathan Afolabi notches first goal of the season.
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